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International Experiences – Dripta’s Story

This is the story told by Dripta Guha Roy, who moved to Greater Aarhus, Denmark four years ago. Dripta grew up in the Netherlands, but later on went to school in Singapore, took a university degree in Canada, and has worked in China, Taiwan, Austria, United Kingdom before coming to Denmark. Dripta shares his story about why he came to Denmark and what made him stay. Furthermore, he tells about the greatest advantages of living and working in Denmark

The Happiest Country in the World and Career Opportunities

Hi, my name is Dripta Guha Roy and I’m Head of Design & User Interface Department at Grundfos. I grew up in the Netherlands, have lived all over the world, and this is the story about why I moved to Denmark four years ago.

Denmark was never quite on my radar, and like most other internationals, I only knew it to be one of the happiest countries in the world. However, I was in a transition phase of my life where I was making a choice of looking for a challenging position in the corporate field and this brought me to Denmark.

I googled Design jobs in Denmark quite randomly and the first job that popped out, call it fate, was “Design Manager, LEGO A/S.” I applied, and a week later I was invited to Billund for a face to face interview and a month later, LEGO helped my wife and our three dogs to relocate safety to Denmark. Here started my story in the Scandinavian belt in an area with endless opportunities. Today, I work for yet another great company here, Grundfos, as Head of Design & User Interface Department, and I love working and living in Billund in Greater Aarhus.

Challenging Work Environment and Talented Colleagues

I have worked and lived many places globally, and what have made me stay in Denmark for four years is among others the great career opportunities present here.

As said, what brought me to Denmark was initially a job at LEGO. However, I have since last year worked for Grundfos as the Head of Design & UI. It is a challenging environment to work in with many talented individuals. This has been another proof for me that there are many different opportunities in Denmark to get some great experience in your corporate journey – you just need to work for it and go out there and grab it.

Unlike place such as Netherlands, Denmark have fewer large cities and fewer large companies to choose from – however, this is not to say that there are only a handful of large companies, because this is not the case. There are many great, advanced and leading companies, which means that there are plenty of great career opportunities for those who really what it.

Work-Life-Balance and Respect for People

I have a Dutch passport, but I consider my culture to be international. I have spent, my childhood in Netherlands, my middle school in Singapore, my university in Canada and my work life, between China, Tiawan, Austria and United Kingdom. My wife is Turkish, and my three dogs have been rescued from three different countries. So, with my international background I experience there to be many great advantages from working in Denmark.

One of the greatest advantages of working in Denmark, is the opportunities you get to spend time with the family, which is a result of the work-life-balance that you can have here. I know it is definitely not a secret, but I think it is important to mention in this day and age when the world is all about making a profit and being in a competitive mode almost all the time, Denmark still respects people and their need to build a stable and sustainable family life. This resonates even into their choices of how they do business in the retail front to immigration. I really favor this because when I came to Denmark with a good job, I found an affordable place to buy, felt more secured and had the ability to take my time and get adjusted to my new surroundings without having to join a rat race like I have experienced when moving to other countries.

Similarities and Differences

Even though I have a rather international backgrund, I dare to point out some of the cultural differences that I experience. If I should compare the Danish and Dutch cultures from a human perspective, I find them very similar when it comes to making friends and letting you into their lives. You need to know both Danes and Dutch people for a long time, and I really mean a very long time, before they feel comfortable trusting you. But once you have gained their trust they become your closest allies.

On the other hand, I find the Dutch very straight forward and direct and the Danes more political when it comes to being direct. That spills out into their work environment, where there are times, I find it challenging to get to what an individual is actually thinking. I know this could come as a surprise to many people, but it is difficult to read Danes over the Dutch. My experience with the work in Netherlands, what you see is really what you get.